The main legal point established in the judgment is the requirement to adhere to the specific procedures and provisions outlined in the Telangana Co-operative Societies Act, 1964 and the Rules made thereunder in the preparation of voters list and conduct of elections.

ORDER :

M.S. Ramachandra Rao, J.

1. The subject matter of both these Writ Petitions is one and the same and so they are being disposed of by this Common Order.

2. The petitioners in these Writ Petitions are questioning:

(i) the actions of the respondents in not preparing/publishing Voters list of the Jubilee Hills Co-operative House Building Society Ltd. (4th respondent in both the Writ Petitions) in accordance with the Telangana Co-operative Societies Act, 1964 and the Rules made thereunder;

(ii) the action of its former President Sri T. Narendra Chowdary (5th respondent in both the Writ Petitions) and the Members of the erstwhile Managing Committee of the said Society (who are currently the Person-in Charge Committee of the said Society) in excluding a large number of eligible members from the Voters list prepared by them and forwarded to the Registrar - cum - Commissioner of Cooperative Societies, State of Telangana (2nd respondent in both the Writ Petitions) vide LR.RCNo.JCS/072/2020 DT. 30.07.2020; and

(iii) abdication of responsibility by the Registrar-cum-Commissioner of Co-operative Societies (2nd respondent) of his exclusive duty and responsibility under Rule 22(6) of the said Rules of due verification, calling for objections and certifying of the eligible voters list after making necessary corrections by illegally delegating the said responsibility to the District Co-operative Officer, Hyderabad.

Petitioners seek a direction to the respondents to prepare a new voters list by incorporating the names of all the members of the 4th respondent-Society including the petitioners strictly in accordance with law including Rule 22 of the said Rules by setting aside the voter list forwarded by the 5th respondent on 30.07.2020 mentioning only 256 members when there were as many as 4,980 members; and then to direct the State Co-operative Election authority (3rd respondent) to issue election notification and conduct elections to the said Society.

3. The Jubilee Hills Co-operative House Building Society Ltd. (the 4th respondent) was registered as a Co-operative Society under the provisions of the then A.P. Co-operative Societies Act, 1964 with the object to carry on for the benefit of its members the trade of building and of buying, selling, hiring, letting and developing land in accordance with Co-operative principles and also to give loans to its members for construction of new dwelling houses. Its area of operation is Banjara Hills situated in the villages of Shaikpet and Hakimpet in the erstwhile District of Hyderabad.

4. In the last 60 years the said Society has developed the area and is to-day a place where politicians, bureaucrats, businessmen, former Chief Ministers, lawyers, sitting and former Judges of the High Court and the Supreme Court of India, film artistes of the Telugu Film Industry and many prominent citizens of Hyderabad reside. It is one of the most lucrative, high-priced and much sought after signature real-estate location in Hyderabad.

5. The then Government of Andhra Pradesh had issued G.O.Ms. No. 890, Food and Agriculture Department dt. 29.03.1965 had conferred the powers on the Additional Registrar of Co-operative Societies to exercise the powers of the Registrar under the Act and subsequently permitted vide G.O.Ms. No. 34 Food and Agriculture Department dt. 16.01.1989 delegation by the said authority to the District Co-operative Officer and Dy. Registrar in charge of Housing Societies in the Twin Cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

6. However, keeping in mind the special position of the 4th respondent-Society and four other Societies of similar nature, the then Government of Andhra Pradesh, in exercise of its powers under Section 3 of the said Act as amended by the A.P. Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Act, 1985, issued G.O.Ms. No. 368 Agriculture and Co-operation (COOP. IV) Department dt. 29.12.1999 modifying the above Government Orders with immediate effect by specifically mandating that only the Registrar of